Cuomo’s $168.2 billion includes additional taxes and fees. Among them is an “Internet Fairness Conformity Tax” to require all large internet retailers to collect state and local sales taxes ($80 million in revenue in FY 18-19), an “Opioid Epidemic Surcharge” on drug manufacturers ($127 million in revenue) and a “Health Tax” on vapor products ($3 million in revenue).

“$4 billion deficit — you can’t possibly get anywhere near where you want to be on education and health care unless you raise revenues,” Cuomo said during his budget address. “It’s just too big a deficit.”

Miscellaneous revenue actions add up to $586 million for the state coffers, according to budget documents. Another $500 million in revenues would come from not-for-profit to for-profit conversions by health insurers, state Budget Director Robert Mujica said. The conversions would help pay for a health care shortfall fund to mitigate the loss of federal health care dollars.

Flanagan’s overall brief assessment of the spending plan:

“I think there’s some good things in there. The money for education, the three percent (increase) is great. Investments in health care workers and direct care workers, all good. The revenue stuff we have to take a hard look at.”

“Even before the federal tax changes took place, people are leaving because taxes are too high,” he said. “So I don’t quite get the logic of taxing more because we’re being taxed more and penalized by the federal government and we’re going to end up losing people.”

DeFrancisco was referring to federal tax reform that caps state and local tax deductions at $10,000. Cuomo has pledged to sue over that provision.

“There’s another concept, and that is cut spending and cut taxes,” he said.

Cut from where?

“When you get to a point in life as a family member, you can’t have everything you want, it’s just the name of the game,” he said, citing high Medicaid spending and Cuomo’s free state college tuition program, which was enacted last year and will expand this year to allow more students from families making up to $110,000 per year to be eligible.